Bradley Sowell full participant in practice...

[LeftHandSmoke]

Why discount the very real possibility that Sowell has a bigger, and also sooner, upside than Fant?

 

[EverydayImRusselin]

Why discount the very real possibility that Sowell has a bigger, and also sooner, upside than Fant?

Because he's been in the league long enough to know the upside isn't there.

 

[Hawks46]

You have to play Fant against NE.

They don't have any dominant edge rushers (or rushers in general) so this is a game where he can get more needed game experience.

 

[CodeWarrior]

For Fant to realize his upside he has to bulk up his lower body. He is much too thin in the legs and has real trouble anchoring. Even if he didn't allow an outright sack look how frequently he was pushed right back into Russell against the Bills.

 

[RussB]

Keep Fant, he can still become even better. What you see is what you get with sowell and hes not even better than Fant.

 

[LeftHandSmoke]

Why discount the very real possibility that Sowell has a bigger, and also sooner, upside than Fant?

Because he's been in the league long enough to know the upside isn't there.

He actually doesn't have that many starts, especially in the ZBS scheme.

It's nothing against Fant's suppose'd upside down the road but it's for sure possible that, for the immediate future, this LT position battle is a competitive one.

 

[pcbball12]

Why discount the very real possibility that Sowell has a bigger, and also sooner, upside than Fant?

Because Sowell doesn't have near the athletic profile as Fant. A guy with athletic deficiencies can only reach a certain ceiling. That, along with the fact that he just hasn't been good since he joined the league. Fant tests out as a top 5 athletic O-Lineman in all of football. That, along with the fact that he is already playing near the level Sowell has been playing with only 2 games as an O-Lineman ever. It is pretty easy to see who has the upside.

If they go back to Sowell at LT, that is fine. But to me, it just tells me that they feel he adds more to the run game than Fant right now. In pass pro, Fant has been every bit as good as Sowell was....possibly even better.

 

[joeseahawks]

I'm curious. Weren't people raving last year about Gilliam? Why did he switch? Is he as bad as these two guys?
Also, it seems to me that we don't even train these guys well. Every year seems to be a new beginning, as if those guys have never played football before. Shouldn't these guys get better over time? We are supposed to have the best OLine coach in the business ... no?

This O-Line business is seriously getting on my nerves and the problem is ... the results are just pathetic.

 

[Cyrus12]

with Sowell healthy that should make Wilson injured again. As for Gary Gilliam I think Gary Glitter would be on par...He has been awful as well. I think Gilliam doesn't get as much heat because of that TD catch in the NFC championship.

 

[Jazzhawk]

Run blocking seemed to be better with Sowell in there. But the passing game seems to be improving with Fant in there (although that could just be due to Russ and Lockett getting healthier too). A tough dilemma for sure.

I would agree that Fant is a better pass blocker, and Sowell is the better run blocker.

 

[LeftHandSmoke]

Cable, when asked during a recent presser about if Sowell will return to his starting position, made the point that he doesn't give a cr*p about what gets written by anyone. He, the team, and the OL, are looking at their own internally-produced performance stats.

We can debate here over who may be the hot hand or else the least sucky at run or pass pro blocking but the proof will be in whoever gets the week's start.

It will not surprise me in the least if Sowell is back at LT this or next week. Other OL changes would not be too a big surprise either.

 

[MontanaHawk05]

It's all hands on deck this weekend.

Group communication and chemistry may be the measure of who does and doesn't play.

[tweet]https://twitter.com/gbellseattle/status/796515164145274884[/tweet]

Rewatching the Falcons and Saints games strengthens this assessment. Ifedi, especially, looks utterly lost out there.

 

[Hasselbeck]

I'd rather go with Fant. He's raw and will make mistakes with a blown block or penalty.. but he's shown more in the limited time he's played than Sowell ever will.

I'd be curious to see Sowell at RT over Gilliam though.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

I'm curious. Weren't people raving last year about Gilliam? Why did he switch? Is he as bad as these two guys?.

I don't remember anyone raving about Gilliam............other than his nice hands on the fake punt.

 

[hawk45]

People were definitely raving about Gilliam in nearly the exact same ways as they now rave about Fant. It was all about his athleticism and how that was going to translate to upside on the outside. Pictures of his six pack floated around.
Fant is the same to me until proven otherwise. An athletic guy who possesses the agility for the outside when not making mistakes but lacks the lower body strength and bulk to anchor well. He still may be better than sowell.

 

[brimsalabim]

I haven't seen Sowell go "full participation" when he is in the game yet. Maybe the rest helped him?

Sowell was a turnstile while Fant has been a speed bump. I think you can adjust to the speed bump.

 

[xStickybudz]

Keep Fant in I'm not huge on watching Sowell turn style all night long. I didn't mind Gorge last weekend and I don't know if at this point sowell would even be a upgrade